In the 83rd minute, Davies had the ball in the penalty area and was challenged by RSL’s Chris Wingert. Davies went down without being contacted by Wingert, but referee Terry Vaughn fell for it and Davies converted the penalty kick to give United a 1-1 draw.

The league said Davies’s actions put “the game into disrepute.”

“The MLS Disciplinary Committee ruled that Charlie Davies intentionally deceived the officials and gained an unfair advantage which directly impacted the match,” MLS Executive Vice President Nelson Rodriguez said. “This type of behavior tarnishes the image of the League, is detrimental to the game and will not be tolerated.”

Asked later by The Post’s Dan Steinberg what he thought of the call, Davies said, with a laugh, “I think the ref made the call, that’s what I think.” Davies also said he wouldn’t call it a dive, but rather an “embellishment.”

MLS officials have made diving a point of emphasis this season.

“Moving forward, all instances of behavior that serves to deceive and that directly impact the game will be subject to severe discipline, including a fine, suspension or both,” Rodriguez said.

After spending the first 17 years of his Post career writing and editing, Matt and the printed paper had an amicable divorce in 2014. He's now blogging and editing for the Early Lead and the Post's other Web-based products.

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